A multi-agency manhunt is under way after a deputy was beaten and cut during a traffic stop in Pearlington, Miss., on Monday evening, Hancock County Sheriff Ricky Adam said, reports the Sun Herald.
Adam said the officer, who has not yet been identified, suffered a 2.5-inch cut to his forehead and multiple bodily injuries.
The incident took place about 10 p.m. on Old Highway 90 when the deputy stopped a blue Lincoln Towncar with a black top that had one person inside, Adam said.
He said the deputy smelled marijuana in the area and was startled when two men came out of the nearby woods and attacked him.
"They roughed him up, but the officer was able to press a button and release his K-9 from the backseat," he said. The K-9 apparently latched on to one of the suspects, freeing the officer, officials said.
The suspects then fled in the Towncar. Chief Deputy Don Bass said Tuesday morning that the suspects are still at-large.
Bass said Tuesday morning that the officer has been released from the hospital after being treated for the cut on his head and a few other scratches. The K-9 officer also is fine, Bass said.
